Ryan Roxie on Alice Cooper, His 3 Ps, Enjoying the Ride & Rock Star Longevity // #056

heartdea13r Podcast w/ chr1stoph3r g0nda // Episode 56 // Ryan Roxie (Solo Artist, Guitarist, Singer/Songwriter, Podcaster, Alice Cooper Guitarist)

Episode Summary:

Ryan Roxie explores themes of mental wellness, motivation, and the journey of being a musician. He discusses the importance of consistency, the role of leadership in music, and the impact of personal experiences on growth. Roxie shares insights on his new single “Fight Another Day,” and emphasizes the significance of enjoying the ride through life’s challenges. The discussion also touches on parenting, gratitude, and the evolving image of rock stars, culminating in valuable life advice for listeners.

“Persistence, patience, and practice are key. Enjoy the ride!”

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Full Episode Transcript:

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (00:00.26)
I think I think I’m paying like 20 to 40 dollars a month

Ryan Roxie (00:04.95)
Yeah, okay, that sounds about right. for a subscription.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (00:10.766)
So I really appreciate your time. Let me give you a really quick background on me and then we’ll dive in. These things usually go about 45 to an hour roughly. And for me, the vibe is like…

and thought it was really fitting with your new music and we’ll talk about it. But for me, the vibe is like mental wellness, fortitude, you know, how people are motivated, what motivates them, the trials and tribulations of life, but that keep us going, right? So as much as I want to talk about music and artistry and creativity, what fuels you, what allows you to still do that after all that time? That’s kind of what I’m going for conversationally and hopefully that’s cool with you.

Ryan Roxie (00:51.362)
Perseverance, absolutely. I love talking about stuff like that.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (00:54.99)
Good. So really quickly, I’m 45. I’m based in Vancouver. I was born in Toronto. I was born into a musical family in the sense that my grandfather founded Socan, which is the Canadian P.R.O. similar to ASCAP or BMI in the U.S. My mom…

or BNG, sorry. My mom ran some labels both here and in the Czech Republic. I was a semi-pro ball player, so I moved to Europe when I was 14. I played baseball there, then I ended up in the US on a baseball scholarship for a year. But it was also during that time where I was like, this isn’t for me. So my parents were like, we’re not paying for US level education when it’s way less expensive in Canada. So I moved back home.

spent 15, 20 years working for different companies, startups, fortune 500s. It was in university though that I started my first website and that led me to a website called Pure Grain Audio, which was more like rock metal punk hardcore. And that evolved into what is V13 media today, which for me is more culture. So music, entertainment, literature,

and music, literature, entertainment, culture. And I guess I just got fed up in my career about three or four years ago during the pandemic. And I talked to my life coach at the time and she was like, you need to work for yourself. So I now have V13 Media Group and we have an artist development agency where we really help younger artists understand like…

how they appear and what they need to do developmentally to have a chance at success. also do like, you know, it’s basically like a label management, publicity, marketing, branding, all in one. We’ve got a book publishing company. We’re currently in talks and have contracted quite a few different musicians and stuff to do their biographies. And then we’ve got the magazine. And then I, for some reason, said on top of all the other stuff we do,

Ryan Roxie (03:00.28)
Nice.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (03:07.076)
website design and everything I should probably have a podcast because I love to talk and This is the best way to market myself and my companies and also meet cool people. So that’s why we’re here

Ryan Roxie (03:18.786)
Perfect. Yeah. Well, you pick the right you pick the right guy to talk to because I like to I like to talk as well. I have my own podcast in the trenches as well as I, you know, I like to listen to. So being a podcast host and then doing a bunch of podcasts. I mean, I think that’s kind of the whole appeal of it so much with the comedians that kind of started. I will always give the comedians, you know, that are around a lot of credit for starting this sort of

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (03:27.491)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (03:48.718)
ecosystem of podcasts and they were just friends talking to each other and basically that you know would always guest on each other’s. So I thought when I started my podcast that I’d do the same sort of thing with fellow musicians. So we’ve been doing a lot of episodes with my own podcast but it has that you know I’ve been pretty busy the last the last year so we didn’t get as many episodes in as I like but

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (04:04.046)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (04:17.492)
myself, I also started that in the dark times of COVID. So, but it was a lot of inspiration that came out of COVID, a lot of good things. My guitar teaching course that I had never been able to do until I had the time to do it was put out during that time, the System 12 Guitar Method, as well as the podcast. And I’m one of the lucky ones that was able to go out and tour

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (04:36.068)
Mmm.

Ryan Roxie (04:46.56)
again after it. lot of, you know, it took a big hit on a lot of bands and luckily I play with a guy that’s an iconic household name that loves to work. So we’re able to go back out there and that’s what I’m doing right now these days. I’m rehearsing for the new tour. Two different shows this year with Alice Cooper and plus I’m releasing my own music. So yeah, it sounds, what you told me, it sounds like you’re…

You’re surviving in the world and that’s what it takes. It takes a lot of drive, motivation, but always following through with your ideas. And that’s kind of what my sort of mantra is to not only my listeners on my podcast, but to my own kids and to my wife. And I just say, know, if you have a good idea, it’s only a good idea until you make it a reality. You know, it’s only an idea until it becomes reality.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (05:22.084)
100%.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (05:38.701)
Right.

Ryan Roxie (05:42.794)
action plan is what has to happen. So I’ve been very lucky in that sense to be able to have some time to do the things that I like to do and tour with the people I like to tour with as well.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (05:57.59)
Yeah, I appreciate that. And I love that you said humbly that you’re lucky that you work with that man and that he’s so hardworking. But I’m assuming that he’s also the type of person that surrounds himself with other hardworking people, much like you are.

Ryan Roxie (06:16.184)
Well, this band has been together, this lineup has been together longer than the original OGs. And we owe everything to the original Alice Cooper band for writing those classic iconic riffs and hits that allow us to still tour today. But there’s something to be said about the cohesiveness of this lineup that’s been together now for over 10 years as a unit. I came back in 2012.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (06:38.404)
Mm.

Ryan Roxie (06:44.118)
moved to Sweden and had a couple years off where I was watching my kids grow up and kind of staying more locally based around Northern Europe. And when I came back in 2012, I really said, look, let’s just, I don’t know how long this will go on for, even if it’s just one or two years, I’m lucky I was able to get back.

into this level of touring with Alice and every year since then has been a gift as far as like we’re doing something that I get to either check off my bucket list or something that I never thought would even happen, you know. So this year is no different. We actually have a new show lined up with the illusionist, Chris Angel. So Alice Cooper and Chris Angel are combining.

their superpowers and it’s the first time I think it’s been done where, you know, big scale illusions are gonna be combined with a rock and roll show. So it’s either gonna be complete chaos or it’s gonna be one of the coolest things you’ve ever seen. And sometimes chaos can be the coolest thing you’ve ever seen.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (07:46.183)
Ha

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (07:51.908)
Absolutely, I mean it sounds cool and Chris Angel I’ve seen his show once. It’s a good show so I’m assuming that it’s gonna…

Ryan Roxie (07:58.69)
I’ve never seen his show. Isn’t that funny? The only time I saw any illusions happen was when we were filming the teaser for it that’s out there now. And I have not seen his show yet. So this will be kind of new and exciting for me as well.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (08:15.108)
Good for you. You mentioned there the, you know, again, humbly, like, I’m so lucky and I’ve been playing with Alice for a while. It’s actually 30 years almost. And you also have co-writes on like several tracks, including Eyes of Alice, Dirty Diamonds. And I think the newest one, if I’m not mistaken. So you’re not just a guitarist.

Ryan Roxie (08:34.286)
The newest album called Road, yeah. We wrote a couple songs together on that. Well, I mean, I don’t think any guitar player is just a guitar player. I mean, most of us, to be honest with you, are a little bit of frustrated singers. And the only reason why we end up singing our own songs is because, you know, we can’t take the psychosis of a lead singer. But luckily, in our case with Alice, he’s already been through his crazy, crazy days.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (08:48.932)
Ha

Ryan Roxie (09:03.404)
we get a much, you know, a mentally stable and very, you know, focused Alice Cooper each and every night. But yeah, I think most guitar players, drummers I’ve found too, are better guitar players than a lot of guitar players and they’re great songwriters. So musicians are musicians, but yeah, we’re lucky to have a front man.

as iconic as Alice. So yeah, I mean, I might use that word lucky, but I mean, it is a combination of a lot of experience and work that put into getting that luck. What is it? know, the old saying is, know, luck is repetition sort of, you know, if you do something enough times, you’re going to have some luck one way or another.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (09:33.069)
Absolutely.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (09:53.706)
Absolutely. mean, like manifesting, I believe in manifesting, it’s super hard, but it’s not sitting on the couch hoping things happen, you have to work for it. And the more you work, the more you believe, the more you create your own luck, right?

Ryan Roxie (10:06.062)
Yeah, it’s not as, again, not as hard as people think. Just like I say, guitar playing is not as hard as people think. That’s why I put together my System 12 guitar method because I kind of built a foundation where it’s easy to understand. I think achieving goals is just doing one thing every single day to further that goal. If you can do more, great. It’ll get you there even faster. But if you can just keep that…

you know, that persistence and that habit of doing one thing towards the goal that you want to achieve, the world’s going to come and meet you halfway.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (10:45.622)
I agree. actually…

I mentioned that I played, you know, semi pro baseball. I’ve spent my life in and around fitness. did, you know, bodybuilding when I was in university, but it was always kind of off and on. So now that I’m 45 approaching 46, I went into this year saying, I’m going to try a different approach for the first time ever where I’m going to still do something, but I’m going to do way less, but just be super consistent. So all I’m doing every day is I’m walking the dog for 20 to 30 minutes. Not this doesn’t include like, you know, running around with my kids and

hikes and stuff. I’m all I do is walk the dog. And I do 100 push ups and 100 sit ups. That’s it. So by my calculations, by the end of the year, I’m at about 36,000 push ups, I just passed about 3600 so far. And it’s crazy because it doesn’t seem like a lot, but I feel such a difference in a month. So I agree with you.

Ryan Roxie (11:36.782)
Yeah, yeah. Those push-ups and sit-ups will definitely, definitely shape you.

I have an elliptical machine here at the house. that’s sort of my cardio trying to stay a bit and fit every single day. And then I kind of zone out a little bit and go down some YouTube rabbit holes here and there while I’m doing it. But I do agree that something hardcore like 100 sit-ups or 100 push-ups would be beneficial. mean, hell, I’m actually looking a little bit worn out today because I did a weekly Pilates class.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (12:10.564)
That’s right.

Ryan Roxie (12:14.064)
with my wife. I’ve done it the last couple weeks. I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it when I’m on the road, but I mean, even just one Pilates class, one one-hour Pilates class a week, that’ll kick your ass and you’ll feel it. You will definitely feel it. So I do kind of subscribe to the belief that physical activity and physical exercise is so important to not just a good mental state, but a good productive state as well.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (12:41.444)
Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah, and I agree with you. It’s about consistency. It’s about showing up. It’s about habit. Let me ask you something. So you… That’s okay. That’s okay. That’s one of my questions coming up. You mentioned Alice and him being such an amazing front man and then playing with him, playing alongside him. What’s it like for you…

Ryan Roxie (12:50.518)
As I drink a beer here on a Friday night.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (13:08.546)
being behind such a big frontman but then also stepping out in your own projects as a frontman is there any conflict is it strange or how does it feel?

Ryan Roxie (13:18.71)
The coolest thing is that Alice has always championed our projects that we’ve done and our music that we’ve done on the the when we’re not touring and even when we’re on stage, he is the one that is really hoping that we get into the spotlight. When it’s your turn to solo, he goes always front and center and make people, you know, recognize you. So we have like a really cool role model to look at.

being on stage with Alice. So when we go to our own projects, our own bands, we can step into that more front man or front person role. And we know a lot of the lessons and a lot of the tricks, if you will, of how to conduct yourself on stage, off stage, and just how to be a leader because we’ve had one.

for so many years or we’ve worked with one for so many years. So I always give Alice a lot of credit and I give his ego a lot of credit because he’s so secure with his own legacy that he wants the others to shine. And that’s truly a mark of someone that’s, you know, there’s rock stars and then there’s superstars. And I would put him in that level because you can walk into a room

and he will make you feel like the most important person in the room, even though he’s the most iconic person in the room, whoever he’s talking to, he will make them feel that way. So, you try, you just gotta sit and observe the way the people that you really admire act, and hopefully some of that rubs off on yourself, and you can hopefully be an influence one day for other people.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (14:51.672)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (15:12.93)
Yeah, that’s amazing to hear. it sounds like it’s an easy transition for you. You actually gave me an aha moment just now. I remember a few years back, I was watching a clip, think it was a Navy SEAL, former Navy SEAL who does motivational speaking now. And he was sharing how good leadership is that it’s always your fault in a sense that if something goes wrong, so one of his like troops, something happens when, when that person is being reprimanded or talked to about it, he’s the one that steps in and says,

this is my bet I should have done a better job of managing my team and whatnot and I think that that’s the hallmark of good leadership of good CEO and it never occurred to me that it’s the same thing with the front man of a band like you might be the face but your job is to not want to be the face and be egotistical about it is to make sure your whole team is taken care of and you guys are working well as a unit

Ryan Roxie (16:04.436)
Well, I mean, at the end of the day, we all know whose name is on the marquee. And I think that’s why this band has been together for as many years as it has, because we all know that we’re supporting and hopefully having a very positive influence on a rock and roll legacy. And so the fact that we all know who’s

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (16:23.545)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (16:27.786)
name is on the marquee and yet that name wants us to shine in the spotlight whenever it’s our turn to shine. It’s the best of both worlds in that case.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (16:40.866)
Yeah, I mean ultimately I’m sure he also knows that as much as it’s his name on the marquee, he needs the best and the brightest around him in order to be there, right? So you’re just as valuable to the operation as anyone else.

Ryan Roxie (16:47.79)
you

Ryan Roxie (16:55.15)
I think this band definitely contributes like 100 % to the way we rock as a unit. To borrow a quote from my friends in Seattle, we have a band called Sweetwater. Give them a big shout out because they’re a great band.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (17:04.354)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (17:11.428)
Oh yeah, no, it’s too early.

Ryan Roxie (17:13.602)
But, you’re from Vancouver, yeah, and you’re just a little bit south and you got Sweetwater. I was actually in that band in the 90s. So that’s something that, again, something that I don’t ever really speak of, mostly in interviews, because we’re talking about a lot of stuff with Alice or Slash or, know, Gilby and then my own stuff. But yeah, I played for a while in the band Sweetwater. They made a great album called Super Friends, but a lot of their phrases that…

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (17:22.125)
No way.

Ryan Roxie (17:42.934)
totally rubbed off on me. Lady Rock, I always will sign things Lady Rock. They came up with that. May Lady Rock shine down upon you. Rock is a unit was another one of their famous catchphrases that I still use and I think is very apropos for this Alice Cooper lineup because we do Rock is a Unit.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (18:01.156)
Absolutely. So we’re kind of going all over I like to usually start the beginning and then go back through the history But you’re doing such a good job of setting up some of my questions So your latest single dropped speaking of expressions and sayings fight another day January 16th Not only is the song title my part of my question, but also there was a line I guess two things that you have have lived in and

Practice, one was practice, persistence, patience, then enjoy the ride. And enjoy the ride comes up in that song, right? So like, why don’t you tell me a little bit about the single and really the meaning behind it, like, because you clearly are living these things.

Ryan Roxie (18:48.504)
Yeah, Fight Another Day is just about having that persistence. And I have a cat right now that wants to become part of the interview. So if you hear her meowing right now, that’s okay. always wants to be, Panda always wants to become part of the podcast. But the persistence that I talk about in Fight Another Day, it’s basically…

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (18:58.564)
That’s okay.

That’s family, it’s all good.

Ryan Roxie (19:14.144)
I have a thing called three P’s, practice, persistence, and patience. I’m a firm believer in that. And it’s a long sort of description of what fighting another day means, but a lot of that has to do with like, you you practice your craft. If you want to do anything in life, you have to be good at it. Then the persistence, that’s where, you you really have to know that not every day is going to be great.

There’s going to be some days that very challenging, but you have to have that persistence to kick that door open and down again. And then the third P is patience, practice persistence and patience. And patience is falls right into the into the song title fight another day, because you have to learn sometimes that look, man, as long as I put the work in and I keep on having this persistence, my shot is going to come.

And basically, that’s how that practice persistence patience became a little bit infused with fight another day. But my saying, my sort of mantra that I’ve been saying for years and I’ve been signing things for years is if I could.

give just three words of advice to anybody that’s growing up and wanting to make it in any sort of business, especially if you want to make it in the rock and roll business, you got to enjoy the ride. You got to enjoy the process of doing it, even though it can get frustrating at times, but enjoy those empty bars. Enjoy those

very freezing, you know, van tours that when you’re going across on, you know, driving your van on black ice and you’re doing 360s down Highway 60. These are all true things that have happened to us. You have to, because that whole evolution, that’s the whole point. I mean, everyone talks about the journey and this and that, but it’s that whole thing of going from

Ryan Roxie (21:19.24)
just picking up a guitar in your room saying, I want to do this for a living, to being able to play the Los Angeles Forum some 50 years later is something that you have to appreciate and enjoy the whole process, even the bad times.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (21:27.458)
Mm-hmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (21:39.17)
Yeah, I mean, it’s such an easy concept, but it’s so hard to learn. I had to go through divorces and being a father and changing careers and all these things to really start to get more into flow and letting it go and enjoying the riots, use your terms. You’re born Ryan Rosowicz, half Polish, I believe, and you’re in…

Ryan Roxie (22:01.166)
half Polish and half, half Polish, half Mexican. There you go.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (22:05.124)
So how and when did you and your life start to truly embody the, you know, enjoy the ride? Was it something you were born into? Your parents raised you that way? Or did you have a special moment?

Ryan Roxie (22:18.582)
It would… I sort of had…

probably the epiphany moment of enjoying the ride and really take it back somewhere along the road, the time, because I’m divorced like you and I’m remarried now. But between my divorce and between meeting my current wife, Bianca, there was a point there where I just took a step back and I said, look, I’ve been putting so much stress

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (22:38.403)
Mmm.

Ryan Roxie (22:53.194)
into making it and to doing it, into like, you know, I haven’t even thought about all the really like incredible experiences I’ve had along the ride. So you should, and I started actually appreciating all those experiences, which made the whole stress level of like, I have to do this, I have to do this, go down.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (23:09.134)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (23:18.572)
And so now I could just work on one thing at a time, knowing that it’s towards a goal, and I could appreciate and enjoy that. So that’s actually where I started really taking life and being a little bit, you know, lowering the importance. I say that a lot as well. There’s something that I don’t know of a lot of people have…

know about it, very few that I know. It was actually a Russian philosopher that came up with this concept of reality trans surfing. I know it sounds a lot like, know, hippie hippie, you know, fantastical stuff, but it actually has a lot of great concepts in it. whether it’s the secret, the power of

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (24:00.983)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (24:11.296)
you know, attraction, the law of attraction, or whether it’s, you know, just enjoying being in the moment. I was able to harness a lot of that. And then quite literally, right after I started practicing that lowering the importance and taking a step back, that’s when I got the call to come back with Alice to play and…

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (24:11.502)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (24:34.806)
because the world had met me halfway. I knew I wanted to go back out and start touring again on a big level. I didn’t know how it was gonna happen. didn’t know what band it was gonna be with. I was hoping it was gonna be Alice, but you never know, you know?

I got the call and ever since then it’s been one year after another of a first. Like I said earlier, some sort of checklist thing that I can check off and go, wow, I always wanted to play with that band. Or hey, I always wanted to play that venue. Or hey, I always wanted to meet these people. So there you go. was able to, that’s basically how.

and when I started enjoying the ride.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (25:22.274)
That’s awesome. It’s similar to me. I had a big life change a few years ago with the separation and I had to for the first time really look at myself and ask myself, you know, what are you going to do? I was

man, how old was I at the time? Like 41, 42. And I ended up on a trip with a buddy, good friend from Toronto who moved out here. I mean, I’ve known each other since university. I’m a huge Tupac and Kurt Cobain fan. That was a large part of my childhood. And so being here was my birthday. said, let’s drive to Seattle. Let’s go and have fun. We’ve already been there. We know it around. I like the note, but I had never been to…

Kurt Cobain’s former house. So we were at the parquet outside of the house. And I just got this like feeling all of a sudden that I was at the exact midway point of my life. And I don’t know why, but I started to say to myself, what do you want the second half to look like?

And that was for me this huge change of throwing out all the negative, going deeper and deeper into therapy, releasing my past. And much like you saying like, I’m just going to be grateful. I’m just going to be happy for everything that’s happening, good, bad or ugly. And as soon as I changed my mindset, everything just became lighter and easier. You know, like there’s no stress, something bad happens and it’s like, okay, let’s just the thing it’ll work out. It always does.

Ryan Roxie (26:53.238)
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not grateful when bad shit happens at all. I just try to, I just lower the importance a little bit of it and take it and always try to, here’s another sort of thing I’ve learned along the way. I try to out slow the other, problem.

So if you can out slow something, whether it’s a person that you’re arguing with and you actually put some thought into what you’re going to say and personal instead of knee jerk reactions and that trust me, knee jerk reactions. I still do it today. can, you my wife will tell you, probably have a knee jerk reaction this afternoon with, you know, with the swimming pool or something like that. But, you know, if I on the big things.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (27:11.662)
That’s cool.

Ryan Roxie (27:40.618)
If I can sort of take a step back, not have a knee-jerk reaction, out slow the problem, then everything becomes a bit more clear. yeah, I can’t believe I’m giving you all my life advice. I feel I’m the rock and roll Yoda today, I feel.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (27:48.398)
Mm-hmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (27:53.024)
I agree.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (27:59.396)
That’s okay. This is what that’s what this is about. I had a I was chatting with this awesome drummer who’s he’s also doing a he’s got a book. He’s a motivational speaker Frank Zumo him and I were chatting. He I don’t know 2530 chats ago and we had this moment where I said like oh man like isn’t it crazy how this word rock star that we throw around that we’ve thrown out for decades.

fundamentally is composed of the rock and the star. I said theoretically you, Ryan, Roxy and everyone else out there that is an actual rock star, you have to have the solidest of base. You have to have a rock solid base in order to shine bright like a star. How much do you feel that there’s maybe truth to that, that you can only ascend higher and higher by being more and more grounded?

Ryan Roxie (28:51.522)
Wow. No, it’s a good term. never really thought about the whole rock star if you break it down, but aren’t all stars made of rock at one point? They’re like kind of a flaming rock as well. So it’s all one being, was what I’m saying. It’s like how you shine brightly. And I guess the key for me is to the longevity factor because I had many, many friends that didn’t. They burned out.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (28:53.07)
Ha ha ha.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (29:07.33)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (29:15.659)
Mmm.

Ryan Roxie (29:20.226)
too quick. The star, and they had big star like qualities. They were rocks, they were stars, they were amazing, talented people, but they burned out too quickly. So what I’ve learned is, a lot through playing with Al is the pitfalls that you can get into and everybody has them, everybody’s got their something. But try to, try to moderate it, try to take

Try to take your whatever problems that you have deep inside, try to sort of bring them out at one point and deal with them instead of pushing them down. That’s definitely a thing for longevity because pushing shit down and stressing about shit that you have no control of, that’s going to definitely shorten your fuse of being a star or just being on this planet. So I guess, you know.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (29:59.833)
Mm-hmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (30:14.489)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (30:18.316)
I try to do things a little bit more with some moderation, a little bit of sense, common sense. mean, God, it just seems like it’s so funny that we coined this phrase rock star that, you know, and that’s sort of a thing that people aspire. Like, you’re living like a rock star. But back in the day when, you know, Alice Cooper in the 70s,

Rock stars were just, it was nothing but turmoil with no money and no real future. And it was, it was so much chaos. So now that’s sort of the, what you aspire to have. But I think what it is is a little bit of the attitude of, know, at least the perception is if you’re a true rock and roll star, it doesn’t mean what you, doesn’t mean you even have to play music. If you’re a rock star, what you do,

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (30:55.0)
Mmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (31:11.566)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (31:13.728)
It’s you’re doing what you love and what you were put on this planet to do. So that to me is the definition of a rock star. It’s not just getting on stage and playing with, you know, in front of a bunch of people. It’s doing, choosing what you love to do and having that choice that you’ve made become reality and make you, notoriety for it. You know, people respect.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (31:26.371)
Mm-hmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (31:41.262)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (31:43.052)
what you do because they know you love doing it.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (31:47.03)
Yeah, that’s sharp. I agree with you. It’s funny you mentioned how like it’s almost like the definition of rock star has changed over the last 30, 40 years, right? Where it was this sex, drugs, rock and roll, lots of groupies. Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (32:00.21)
You should be decadent. Yeah, I was decadent. I’m sure in some club tonight or some sort of tour on some different generational thing, there is some old school rock and roll rock star debauchery going on. Probably.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (32:20.214)
Absolutely. And I think there’s a time and there’s a time and place for everything. But you mentioned, I think you hit the nail on the head when you said it’s about longevity. Right. So that like to my point about shining the brightest, one could say that shining the brightest is like having the longest run, you know, like getting the most out of it. But you have to put in a lot of work to get the run. Like you got to really take care of the car to get 250,000 miles out of it. Some of your friends didn’t do that.

and was it because they weren’t taking care of themselves, you know, mentally or physically?

Ryan Roxie (32:55.66)
Yeah, yeah, both, all of the above, you know. Mentally, the stress and all that can get to you. Physically, the lifestyle can get to you. So if you can, again, use your mental common sense and say, okay, this practice will, you know, you can dip your toe into a bunch of different,

bunch of different swimming pools, but you can’t always, you you can’t do it every single day, every single minute to, and because at one point they’ll, that pool will be infested with sharks. And unfortunately in the world of rock and roll, there’s a lot of pools infested with sharks.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (33:41.38)
Absolutely.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (33:45.87)
Definitely. Do you think that becoming a father helped you with the grounding and with the gratitude? Maybe slowing down?

Ryan Roxie (33:56.142)
It would depend on who you would ask. think some, my ex might not agree with that. I think that, yeah, it definitely makes you think a bit more about the longevity of like, okay. But it also makes you want to become more of a mentor, not, you know, for them. You want to lead by example. So you kind of, you do your best.

while still doing what you love to provide an example of like, hey, this is possible. I’m living proof this is possible that you can do what you want for a living. So as long as if I can get that lesson across to both my son and my daughter where they end up doing in life with exactly what it is they dream about and want to do, then I will feel I’ve contributed, you know, definitely.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (34:28.932)
you

Ryan Roxie (34:56.462)
being, you my lifestyle is being on the road for as many years as I was. The longest time I spent with them was when I wasn’t on the road in those years. And they were just, you know, very young, up to like, you know, seven, eight years old when they were just, you know, just starting to really grasp memories and stuff. So my memories is watching them grow up. Their memories is…

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (35:21.624)
Thank

Ryan Roxie (35:26.382)
Dad’s always gone half the year on tour. So hopefully me not being there, the example that I prove of living the life that I’ve been able to have will, and if it actually gets them to, it motivates them to live their own dreams out, then I feel that I will have done something

pretty good as a father. yeah, it’s, look man, whenever you have a job that takes you away from.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (35:57.101)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (36:02.848)
almost half the year, there’s always going to be some family guilt that you hold in yourself. again, holding guilt is not healthy for anybody. So I’ve really tried to let that go. And that might confuse some people, but it is something that, you know, it’s really hard to hold on to because it’s not healthy for you.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (36:09.348)
Thank

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (36:27.744)
I totally agree. We’re on the same page and we share that in common. You know, I’m not touring the world, but I’m doing everything I can in my power to be successful with, with, you know, my endeavors. And so that requires me to put in a lot of hours sometime. The one thing that I really learned and took the heart over the last few years was just pure presence. So

Now I only see my kids half the time because my ex and I share custody. So I’ve already been reduced in terms of how much I see them. Then I’m also working. But when they come through that door, I know that I have to flip that switch in my mind and tune into their channel and just be ultimately present. And that’s what they appreciate. They’re not going to worry about the times that I’m gone per se. They’re going to know that whenever I’m with dad, he’s just giving me the undivided attention. It sounds like you have the same,

Ryan Roxie (36:53.345)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (37:18.48)
same mantra with your stuff.

Ryan Roxie (37:19.98)
I try, but you’re not always going to get it right. And there’s going to be some times that you think, hey, well, what are you talking about? I’m present. We went here on this trip. And it’s like, no, maybe that’s not what the thing is. The thing is really listening to them when you have the time to. Because at one point, and I’m experiencing that now, is that

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (37:22.616)
That’s true.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (37:31.608)
Mm.

Ryan Roxie (37:49.864)
once they’re out of the nest and they’re finally have their own lives, then it’s not as necessary to talk to Pop every single day. hopefully the lessons that I was able or sort of the influence that I was able to have is going to guide the kids with their.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (37:58.978)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (38:11.426)
future dreams and stuff like that. you’re not always going to get it right. You think you’re going to be right sometimes, but you know, being a parent, God, if it was that easy, there wouldn’t be all these books and movies about it. And trust me, it seems like there’s less and less.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (38:13.657)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (38:30.678)
You know, seems like it’s less and less parents these days. It’s just people choosing not to have kids. that’s something, you know, that will obviously not in my generation, but in future generations will probably be talked about and probably be of some concern.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (38:38.297)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (38:51.606)
I agree. It’s funny because I have three of my own and two, my partner has two. So we have a house full of kids and like, I can’t see it any other way. I think that having kids was the greatest thing I ever did.

Ryan Roxie (38:58.22)
Bye once again.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (39:05.058)
I’m going somewhere with this next point. So I have already talked about this. had a child with my partner last year who lived for a week and then on Father’s Day she passed away. It was the hardest thing that I’ve ever done in my life. But I talk about it. That’s okay. I talk about it because I want to normalize the fact that

Ryan Roxie (39:19.79)
Sorry to hear that man, sorry.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (39:26.306)
bad shit happens and it’s okay to be upset and it’s okay to talk about it and that is healing that also really changed my focus even more on you know to let it go to enjoy life because you never know when things are going to happen. found she we called her her middle name was Monarch.

And I found this photo album that had a monarch on it and then below it it says something like, life’s not counted by the number of breaths you take but by the number of moments you create for other people. You know and it was so profound and then I read your bio and it said Roxy’s passion is passing the torch on to the next generation. You know I feel like there’s so many similarities to our ethos. Tell me a little bit about that feeling. Where does it come from? Why do you feel so compelled to do good, do right?

live long and pass it on.

Ryan Roxie (40:20.066)
Because I think for the most part, people are good. I want to always be that optimist where, and the only way that this whole game continues is if that people become kinder and are still, again, doing what they love to do.

Now, the argument is someone’s going to tell me, well, there’s people that like to kill people and that’s they get joy out of that. OK, yeah. But I’m talking about an overall sort of I’d say the majority of people are good people. And if they’re doing what they’re put on this world to do, then then it’s a better world, obviously. I was I’m.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (40:53.038)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (41:08.675)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (41:12.438)
one of the lucky ones that was able to do exactly what they wanted to do from a very, very young age. I wanted to be those posters on my wall. I’ve been able to play music and tour for so many years. So now all my motivation is to inspire the younger generation to have, to put the work in and

become whatever they want to become that they have passion for. And like I said, it’s just knowing that I’ve been able to do it and knowing that it’s true. I drank the Kool-Aid, I was able to succeed in it. I know for, okay, there’s a thousand stories of not succeeding, but I’m gonna, whatever, my story, and it doesn’t mean that I myself think I have.

complete success yet. There’s still so many things I want to do and continue to do and set goals for. But I know that with this playing on stage and being able to play music for a living and file your taxes as a musician, I’m able to, I’ve done that and I’m doing that. So why not inspire as many people to, if they want to do music,

even better because it’s right in my wheelhouse. But whatever it is, the inspiration to get them to do what they love to do. So like I said, it’s just me being, it’s just me having enough self, I guess, knowledge to know that I’m lucky, but I’m also driven and…

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (42:53.444)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (42:56.974)
I’m also very patient because I’ve been in this game for a long, time. And if someone like me, who’s been in this game for as long as I’ve been and still doesn’t think of themselves as a huge success, on some level that needs to go up, then I think the future is positive. And it’s definitely…

possible to do even more.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (43:27.906)
Yeah, I love that. It sounds like the three P’s are really working for you.

Ryan Roxie (43:34.03)
Well, you know, it was… I want to remember her name that told me because Alice Cooper has a way of putting it, you know, in the same sort of things. has… And we might use different words, but he has a way of saying it. So it’s easier to say, okay, Alice Cooper has been able to tell me these things. But I remember it…

very vividly. It’s just I don’t remember her name, who was it. was a woman that worked at sort of, I believe she worked for BMI. You know, like one of the royalty selection. It was in Nashville. I had lunch with her and she was friends with one of my buddies that was a guitar tech for the band Guns N’ Roses. So we went out to lunch and we just had, we just started a great conversation about

the music business and where I was at that point. And that’s when she says, you know what? The three P’s I think would really help you out. And that’s how, and that’s truly the story. The only reason I don’t, the only reason I don’t always credit her is because I can’t remember her name right now. It’s almost like almost like a,

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (44:34.179)
Wow.

Ryan Roxie (44:50.966)
Like one of those things that happened is, did it really happen? Did I, was it a dream? Did I, did that lunch really even exist? So yeah, could have been Helen. Damn it.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (44:58.358)
Yeah. I mean, that’s part of the beauty of it, right? Like we sometimes unintentionally pass information on to the next generation through these experiences, through these stories, which is why it’s so important to converse and which is why I think now more than ever, these podcasts and long for conversations are so important because

Tribally as a society we used to just constantly have these campfires and talk about Stuff and pass the lessons on more and more and it’s it’s not happening as much now But it is like this this allows us to memorialize

Ryan Roxie (45:35.072)
It is like this and it might be more individual that you’re reaching somebody. But you know what? One person at a time and you can reach a whole lot of individual people that can go on and sort of spread the word in their circle as well.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (45:56.268)
Yeah. You grew up in a really musical home. I think that you actually started playing guitar after drums and some other stuff. What was the point in your life where you said, I want to do this and there’s no other thing that I’m going to do?

Ryan Roxie (46:16.398)
Well, I picked up guitar when I was five because there was like one of, there was like, I have a few guitars in the back right now, the room, but it was literally like that. There was a guitar that didn’t look that much different than that one right there, that 335. It wasn’t a 335 though. It was some sort of Sears special, but it was just laying on the couch and I would pick it up and I’d strum it.

And so then I went to guitar lessons and learned a couple things, learned my chords and I learned, I might not have learned it the right way, but I learned, I was into music, and my parents could tell that I was really into playing guitar. Then, somewhere around 11, and I don’t know, mean, if you think about it, if you just do the math, that’s like 19,

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (47:06.361)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (47:09.778)
76. All right. I was born in 65. So that would be 76 somewhere around there. Right. And I want to say maybe 76, 1977 right around there. All the bands that were coming out with music had one of their best. They either recorded their best music in 76 and released it in 77 or put out their best music in 1977. Right around that time. That’s when I told myself, you know what?

Because it was undeniable how much great music was coming out. said, I have to do this for a living. So that’s exactly what had happened. And that’s why to this day I sign things, Roxy 77. Because without even really knowing, it’s not the original reason and the original motivation for signing Roxy 77. That’s a different story. But I think about it now.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (47:54.019)
Hmm.

Ryan Roxie (48:05.47)
And 77 was such an influential year. So that must have been the year that I decided to take it really serious.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (48:13.796)
tool. How did Rosowitz become Roxy?

Ryan Roxie (48:17.518)
I just, because I knew that, you know, all the album covers that I were looking at, and especially at that time I collected a lot of 45s, my name would never fit on just a small strip of a 45 RPM. So I had to shorten it somehow.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (48:25.988)
You

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (48:30.393)
You

Ryan Roxie (48:38.572)
I you know, the Polish part of me says, okay, if you go down to the traditional, traditional pronunciations, Roksewicz, Roksewicz, right? Ryan Roksewicz. But it’s, you know, I just kind of abbreviated it. For many years, it was R-O-X-Y until I moved down to Los Angeles.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (48:52.068)
Mmm.

Ryan Roxie (49:04.194)
Then I moved down to Los Angeles and there was a club right next to the Rainbow Bar and Grill called The Roxy, R-O-X-Y. I said, well, I got to change that. Quickly became R-O-X-I-E. And then therefore I’ve been R-O-X-I-E ever since.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (49:09.048)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (49:19.972)
I have two last questions, one serious, one not serious.

Ryan Roxie (49:24.151)
Sure.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (49:26.916)
You mentioned something earlier that I find so fascinating because I am in that part of my life now where you said, I aspire to so much and I’m still going, which is a trip because there’s so many people given your background with everyone you’ve performed with and slash a snake pit and all of it.

Ryan Roxie (49:47.698)
Ahem.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (49:50.83)
people, their minds are blown thinking about how much you’ve done. And yet you’re sitting there at a point saying, man, I haven’t done anything. I got to keep going. What’s it like being so far up the mountain, but thinking that you still have so much to go?

Ryan Roxie (50:05.064)
it’s relativity relative relative. Everything’s relative. I mean, I just look at I can guarantee you that there’s still things that Tom Brady wants to do. It seems like he’s done it all with you know, now he’s got a co he owns part of my favorite football team, you know, and he also, you know,

He’s going to be announcing the Super Bowl or whatever, or maybe he’s not doing it this year. you know, like it’s all relative. Even Alice has. Why does Alice keep putting out albums? He doesn’t. He doesn’t need to put out albums. He’s got a great catalog for as long as, you know, live off that catalog forever, ever. But he really does get inspired, loves music. He loves to listen to music. So I just look at, you know.

It’s all relative. There might be someone that’s less experienced than me that’s working their way up and they’re fighting hard and they’re making big strides very quickly. It might be someone like Alex Kubu who’s got my experience, you know, definitely more experience than myself, but it’s inspirational because I see him still working. you’re always somewhere in the middle. You know, no matter what, you’re always some…

where in the middle of where you want to be. But here’s the little difference, the only difference I say, from time to time, take a step back and celebrate the win. Celebrate the fact of the accomplishments and sit back and enjoy it. Don’t let it stop your progress of moving forward and setting goals for yourself.

But definitely celebrate the win from time to time. was, you know, for this last year, for me, the win and celebrating it in a big moment for me was actually playing the Los Angeles Forum. Because I had never played that, of all the years of playing music and all the venues that we’ve been able to play, I had never played the Los Angeles Forum. And when I first moved down to Los Angeles, one of the first concerts I went to in 1984,

Ryan Roxie (52:23.924)
was at the Los Angeles Forum and it was an artist named Prince and the tour was Purple Rain. So I went to go see Prince and Revolution at the Los Angeles Forum in 1984 on the Purple Rain tour. Ever since that show, I was like, someday I’ll play the forum. Someday I’m gonna play the forum. It didn’t happen till I was 59 years old. So, you know, that’s that patience. That’s that patience thing. I waited.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (52:28.718)
Wow.

Ryan Roxie (52:53.826)
and I finally got it I celebrated the win. But guess what? Now I’m looking forward to this next year’s tour where we go to Vegas and we do this Chris Angel and Alice Cooper show that’s combining the illusions and rock and roll together. So looking forward to that too. And hopefully looking forward to seeing anyone that’s listening out here at an Alice Cooper show or maybe even a Ryan Roxy solo show because that’s…

actually in the works as well. If there’s some breaks this year that we can work at some Roxy solo shows, definitely I’m down for it. So the best way to find out about any of that information and the new music and all that stuff is just RyanRoxy.com.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (53:34.316)
Absolutely and I’ll link all that stuff in the chat too last question last question before I hand it over to you to wrap us up so the when I got the yes this chats happening the first thing I did is went to Instagram and for some reason the first video was you with a huge smile and you’re at an airport you’re killing time you’ve got a drink and there was like a huge bar behind you and I said

Ryan Roxie (53:37.518)
Appreciate you. Thank you.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (53:59.97)
I wonder what his go-to is. You know, at the end of the day, when you’re celebrating that win, is it a whiskey? Is it a sangria? What’s your favorite go-to?

Ryan Roxie (54:06.017)
Ha ha ha!

Ryan Roxie (54:09.898)
It’s been changing. It’s been changing year by year. I still, at a show, at a rock show, you want lean, mean, fight machine sort of drink and it’s almost as good as water. I mean, I’m sure there’s gonna be a lot of people that don’t agree, but I feel that vodka and soda with lemon in it is like vodka, soda, water.

or seltzer water if you can find it. And a big, big, big squeeze of lemon is a great, great sort of energized energy drink. But to really celebrate the win, it depends. If I’m with my wife, it’s a nice red blend.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (54:46.542)
All right.

Ryan Roxie (54:52.728)
because we live in Cape Town and there’s a lot of amazing red wines. And so I would probably take a glass of Babel Red Blend. And if it’s just me with the boys and in the band and we’re just chilling at the hotel bar or whatever, I’d probably take an old fashioned. I’m a bourbon guy as well. So. And then look.

There’s always margaritas. Trust me, I’m the wrong guy to talk to about what your favorite go-to is because apparently I go to a lot of them. Right now I’m enjoying a Cape Town, South Africa based IPA beer, which I don’t usually drink Indian Pale Ales, but if I am going to have a beer, it’s probably going to be an IPA.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (55:40.068)
So similar to life, it’s about timing, it’s about the vibe, it’s about going with the flow, it’s enjoying the ride.

Ryan Roxie (55:48.466)
perfect. See, I got someone else saying it. If I can get as many people to say, enjoy the ride, and then, you know, I’m sure whoever coined the phrase is, you know, long gone by now at this point, but somehow, I don’t know where I heard it. I don’t know why. I it sounds like a cliche, but it just sticks for me and it means a lot for me. honestly, I do try to enjoy the ride each and every single day.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (56:09.133)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (56:16.772)
We need those reminders. I cliches exist for a reason that you can’t see it, but I’m covered in little tattoos and sayings and expressions. And halfway through this chat, I was already thinking like, oh, enjoy the ride. That’s my next one. I’m doing that. So I’ll take it on.

Ryan Roxie (56:28.11)
Are you saying that you have all the you have the the ones that make you look like a an envelope a stamped envelope? Okay

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (56:36.15)
No, not quite, just like little ones, you all over.

Ryan Roxie (56:38.72)
No, those are bigger ones. I’m talking about all the the the all the model girls now. They all look like glorified, beautiful envelopes that have gone through. I call it the passport stamp photo tattoo because the passport stamp tattoo, because there’s just like they have tons of little ones that are like stamped all over the place and it doesn’t make any rhyme or reason. And I’m like going, OK, well, it’s not a

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (56:45.3)
no, no,

Ryan Roxie (57:08.374)
It’s not a sleeve piece. I guess, you know, look, you’re looking at someone that doesn’t have a single tattoo. So I’m a tattoo and I love tattoos. just don’t have I don’t see the reason for me having a. And it’s what’s crazier. It’s now the anomaly.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (57:10.477)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (57:16.557)
no?

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (57:25.986)
totally fair.

Ryan Roxie (57:30.698)
Now I’m the one that’s like sort of like because when when tattoos first came out it seemed like man that’s crazy that’s that’s he’s got a tattoo. You know I mean remember Guns N’ Roses first came out and and they had like really like a lot of tattoos on the shoulders like whoa that’s wild man cool and then everyone rushed out and got him. I never did and now I’m me and one other guy are the only two that I know in rock and roll that don’t have tattoos. Me and Alice Cooper.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (57:50.51)
Yeah.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (57:58.252)
It’s funny how in our lifetime, Alice doesn’t either.

Ryan Roxie (58:00.206)
Zero tattoos.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (58:03.908)
It’s funny how in our lifetime it did a 180 right like it became so trendy and now it’s almost like everyone gets them it’s a rite of passage I you know credit to my ex at one point she she said it’s like putting a bumper sticker on a belly I’m never gonna get one and I think that my my grandmother always says chacun a son go everyone has their taste so who cares you do you at the end of the day

Ryan Roxie (58:20.846)
You

Ryan Roxie (58:30.252)
Well, when did it switch? But it made a jump. The tattoo thing definitely made a jump to sports because now, if you’re a ball player and you don’t have a sleeve tattoo on at least one of your arms, it’s almost, it looks like weight. you know, basketball, baseball, football especially. But it seems like it is the anomaly not to have tattoos in sports as well.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (58:37.795)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (58:56.962)
where not that long ago, you didn’t see that many, that much happening. And I’m just talking about your field, to keep it to baseball, you know?

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (59:06.436)
Yeah, yeah, You know what, if I think about it, I almost feel like it was the late 90s, early 2000s, and it was culturally with the music and stuff that all of a sudden people started to get the tribal tattoos or the bands, and then a celebrity would get one, and it started to normalize a little bit more. And then it was, I don’t know, was it the 2010s or the early…

2000s at the end of 2000s and all of a sudden Miami Inc and all those shows blew up you know and Kat Von D was popular and not to say that she’s not now but like that that culture blew up around that time and now there’s like festivals right and incarceration and all these festivals that are music and tattoos it’s ubiquitous with the lifestyle and the culture

Ryan Roxie (59:40.512)
Mm-hmm.

Ryan Roxie (59:57.462)
Right. thing is for me, I like to wear a lot of different hats, glasses and shirts. So the thing, the idea of wearing just one is kind of like in a vocab, okay, I like it today, but well, I like it tomorrow. And I know it goes against the whole tattoo mantra of like, you get it for a reason because it’s there for you for life. Well, I haven’t, you know.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:00:09.144)
Mmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:00:23.203)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (01:00:26.158)
I like too many different things to just like have the same one. If I could get one where I could just, it could change into something different every single month without having to do a cover piece and do another cover piece, because I guess that is truly the joy of a tattoo too, is because you see it, you like it, but then you want another one because you like something else.

So it would be like me wearing 20 different types of shirts, you know, because… And then I have to wear them all.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:00:54.532)
Mm-hmm.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:01:00.778)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. What?

So for me, this one, I get the Japanese enzo here. The concept is really about the perfection is the imperfection. So I think the whole point of the tattoo is that you do it, it’s part of your story, it’s enjoying the ride, and who cares if it sucks or not. My only rule was always get tattoos in places so that if you wore a tux, no one knew that you have tattoos. So can be mysterious, then hit the pool and be like, my god, there’s tattoos.

Ryan Roxie (01:01:34.03)
It does seem like Enjoy the Ride would be the most logical tattoo for me to get somewhere. I don’t know if I’m going to get like a prison gang tattoo of Enjoy the Ride, but it does seem like if I do, and it’s always, because I’ve never said never, I never said no, I’ll never get a tattoo. No, I just haven’t. It’s just up until this point. So I’m 60 now.

If I head into an old folks home at around 80 or around 77, let’s say I go to an old folks home around 80, 77, maybe, yeah, somewhere between 76 and 77, right? But around that time, if I go there and then that’s when I start getting tattoos, I get my first tattoo when I head to the retirement home, everyone in that retirement home is gonna go.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:02:09.284)
76.

Ryan Roxie (01:02:28.342)
Where’d you get that fresh tattoo? How did you maintain those for all those years? Say hey, you know, enjoying the ride. Right there. That’s what it reads.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:02:34.734)
Ha ha ha.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:02:40.844)
I’m going to hold you to it. We’ll see what happens.

Ryan Roxie (01:02:43.566)
All right, I’ll see you in about what, what, 17 years, 18 years. That is crazy to think that that’s it. I’ll be 77 in 17 years. That is wild. See, that’s the scariest thing I think we’ve talked about the entire podcast.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:02:48.056)
We’re good.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:03:02.016)
is time and age. Isn’t it crazy how like you have kids and then somehow it seems to go by faster. The clouds move faster. Time speeds up. You watch these things grow and you’re like, man, how did I become almost 50? It’s just what? And my parents are like, my parents are like, you’re still young. What are you talking about?

Ryan Roxie (01:03:19.041)
Yeah, but…

Ryan Roxie (01:03:23.598)
Yeah, because again, because it’s all relative. You’re always somewhere in the middle. There’s always going to be someone older. There’s always going to be someone younger. The only time that you’re older than anybody is, I guess, right when you come out. And the only time you’re the oldest is when you pass away because there’s no one that’s younger.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:03:32.388)
What is

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:03:46.253)
Yeah.

Ryan Roxie (01:03:52.664)
But, you know, I don’t know, this has gotten way too deep. I’m just a rock and roll guy that wants to talk about his new single, Fight Another Gay. Go check out the music. It’s not that deep and philosophical, but it’s been a good conversation. I appreciate it.

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:03:56.895)
Hahaha

Chr1stoph3r G0nda (01:04:07.864)
I appreciate you, I’m so grateful for our time. I hope that you have a fantastic weekend and tour with not just Alice, but your own stuff too. I always like to hand the mic over to my guests for the final word. And you have many, you’ve got many stories and you’ve delivered so much insight, but give me one last wrap up that everyone needs to know and live by.

Ryan Roxie (01:04:15.918)
Yes.

Ryan Roxie (01:04:31.702)
Hmm. All right. One last final wrap up. Well, whatever you’re doing today, take a step back. You know, if you watch this and you you made it till the end. Do what I said earlier, celebrate the win. Go have yourself. Maybe you’ve had a cocktail, maybe you’ve had a glass of wine. You took Roxy’s advice and you’re already celebrating the win. But.

Take a step back, take stock of what you’ve done and your accomplishments so far. What are the things that you have done that you truly wanted to do up until this point in your world? And now think about the things that you want to do in the future. And how are you lined up to make those become realities? How can you make those goals, those dreams?

become realities to something that you’re again in 10, 5, 10 years, you’re going to sit back and say, okay, I accomplished that. So now what’s my next set? And if you can do that, that is literally the definition of imagining your reality. So I do have an album out called Imagine Your Reality, which is another sort of saying that I like to say. So do two things for me.

after. Imagine your reality and above all enjoy the ride. Those are my two fortune cookie sayings of the day. So enjoy yourselves guys.